Thursday, October 22, 2009

aesthete \ES-theet\, noun:

• One having or affecting great sensitivity to beauty, as in art or nature.

Aesthete is from Greek aisthetes, "one who perceives," from aisthanesthai, "to perceive."
Selective Fatigue Syndrome

• Fatigue which is used as an excuse when one does not want to perform undesirable tasks such as work.

My co-worker claimed her Chronic Fatigue Syndrome kept her from coming to work, but she had no problems making it to the nightclubs. What she really has is Selective Fatigue Syndrome.

Trivia
What legendary actor, while publicizing his film appearance as Robin Hood, playfully shot an arrow that flew through an open window and hit someone in the derriere?

• Douglas Fairbanks, in 1922. The arrow was fired by the swashbuckling silent film star from atop a New York City hotel. Fairbanks paid his stunned victim $5,000 to forget the incident.

Today in History

• Andre-Jacques Garnerin: made the first parachute jump; he went up in a hot-air balloon and down in a parachute (1797)
• the Great Disappointment: adherents of Millerism found that Jesus had not returned; most left the movement, while the rest figured out that it was the beginning of investigative judgment in heaven (1844)
• Toastmasters International: public speaking educational organization was founded in Santa Ana, California (1924)
• Cuban Missile Crisis: JFK imposed an air and naval blockade on Cuba after learning of Soviet missile bases there (1962)
• Chandrayaan-1: India launched its first unmanned lunar probe (2008)

Today's Birthdays

• Franz Liszt (1811-1886): pianist/composer
• John Reed (1887-1920): radical journalist who was subject of Warren Beatty's Reds; he is the only US citizen to be buried in the Kremlin
• Doris Lessing (90): author of The Golden Notebook
• Timothy Leary (1920-1996): psychedelic drug-taking psychologist
• Tony Roberts (70): stage and screen actor, on Broadway now in The Royal Family; also, actors Sarah Bernhardt (1844-1923), Derek Jacobi and Christopher Lloyd (both 71), Annette Funicello (67), Catherine Deneuve (66), Jeff Goldblum (57) and Valeria Golino (43)
• Ichiro Suzuki (36): MLB record-holder for single-season hits; plus, tennis pro Amanda Coetzer (38)
• Zac Hanson (24): singer/songwriter/instrumentalist, Hanson